Improvement in hopples for horses



L. MERRILL.

Hopplesv for Horses.

Patented March 10 IINITED STATES PATENT QFFIGE.

LEWIS MERRILL, OF PHILADELPHIA,PENNSYLVANIA.

IMPROVEMENT IN HOPPLES FOR HORSES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 148,486, dated March 10, 1874; application filed February-3, 1874.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LEwIs MERRILL, of the city and county of Philadelphia, State of Pennsylvania, have invented an Improvement in Hopples, of which the following is a specification:

My invention relates to hopples or side lines used'for preventing a horse from straying by i'ettering two of its legs together; and the ob ject of my invention is to make a light hopple, which can be packed away in a small compass, and which can be readily applied to and removed from a horses legs, and will not injure the latter-an object which I attain by combining severed rings A A, of leather or other suitable material, with a cord, B, substantially as shown in the perspective view, Figure 2, of the accompanying drawing. Each of the severed rings A and A is rounded transversely, so that it cannot cut or abrade the horses legs,

and on the outside it is made hollow, so as to 1 present a continuous groove for receiving the cord, which is retained in its place by straps a a, riveted or stitched to the ring, or by eyes I) b, keyed to the same. c

To apply the hopple, one of the severed rings is adjusted to the horses leg above the hoof, and the cord B'is then passed through the eyes I) b, and knotted at d to an eye or loop secured to or formed on the end of the cord. The other severed ring A is then adjusted to another leg of the horse, and the cord B passed through the eyes a a, and knotted through a loop, 0, as fully illustrated in Fig. 2, the knots being so made, both at d and e, that they will be ti ghtened by stretching the cord. The surplus end of the cord B is knotted at f, in any suitable manner. Fig. 2 illustrates the condition of the hopple when applied to the legs of a horse, as shown in Fig. 1.

The hopple has been more especially de signed for the use of cavalry regiments whose duties call them to distant points where it becomes necessary to camp out, and where the horses are permitted to graze under the proper restrictions which hopples insure. In connection with cavalry use, my improved hopple possesses the advantages of being light and easily disposed of without encumber-in g the soldier; and I prefer to make the cord detachable, in the manner described, so that when the hopple is not in use the cord, when detached from the rings, is available as a haltershank, and may be employed for other useful purposes.

The cord, however, may, if desired, be permanently connected to the severed rings, but always in such a manner as to embrace the same, so that the tensile strains to which the hopple is subjected maybe resisted solely by the cord, the rings serving simply asmediums for preventing the cord from injuring the. horses legs. I

A leather strap or a flexible wire cord may be used for connecting the severed rings together.

I claim as my invention A hopple composed of the severed rings A A and cord or strap B, embracing the rings, all substantially as and for the purpose herein set forth.

Intestimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

LEWIS MERRILL.

lVitnesses:

WM. A. STEE HARRY SMITH. 

